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Newport News Man Sentenced For Participating In Drug Conspiracy

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Salvatore Lopiccolo, age 35 of Newport News, Virginia, was sentenced today to 57 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his participation in a drug conspiracy.

Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen.

Lopiccolo was indicted by a federal grand jury on November 14, 2013, and on April 21, 2014, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute analogues, cocaine, cocaine base, methylone, marijuana, psilocybin and drug paraphernalia.

In a statement of facts filed with his plea agreement, the defendant admitted he conspired with others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a variety of drugs and drug analogues from Bonsai Pipe and Tobacco. Multiple controlled purchases of cocaine, crack cocaine, marijuana, methylone, psilocybin, drug analogues and drug paraphernalia were made from Bonsai, the defendant, and Bonsai employees.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Virginia State Police Tri-Rivers and Peninsula Task Forces the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the York-Poquoson County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric M. Hurt is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.